Facebook, iMessage, BBM Hammering SMS Revenue

Revenue coming from lucrative SMS services is quickly falling according to a report published by market research firm, Strand Consult.

The firm said that "If you look at how most operators market and sell SMS, you will see that most operators charge the customer for each individual SMS he or she sends".

But with a rising number of mobile users already on other mobile services (whatsapp, chaton, MSN, SKype, BBM, Twitter, iMessage or Facebook), users prefer to use their flat rate data allowance to send messages.

Given that Facebook has nearly a billion users with more than 40 per cent using the service on their handsets, this could have a serious impact on the bottom line of mobile phone operators given that the cost price of SMS is negligible and has been used as a cash cow for decades.

In the UK, mobile phone operators have already moved forward to data. All major mobile phone operators offer unlimited texts bundles even on their entry level pay monthly contracts with some, like Three, even offering free Skype and MSN messaging.